Liza Mohanty (Faculty and Dept. Chair - Biology)

Attendance at this conference was possible through funding by the Olive-Harvey College PBI grant.

List at least 3 sessions you attended (Title and Description)

Flip a Lesson: Enhance Student Learning and EngagementThis workshop introduced the concept of the flipped classroom as a learner-focused method of teaching. The levels of cognitive learning in Bloom’s Taxonomy were reviewed and then instructors had the opportunity to develop lesson plans for both “at-home” work for the student (which generally involved the lower levels of Bloom’s Taxonomy) and the more challenging critical-thinking work for the classroom (which generally focused on the higher levels). One example of an in-class activity, Build Your Own Bingo Card, was demonstrated, which incorporated both lower and higher level thinking skills.

Keynote Lecture: The Teaching Professor in 2020: Shaping the Future in a Time of Rapid ChangeJoshua Kim, Director of Learning and Technology for Dartmouth’s Master of Healthcare Delivery Science and a sociologist by training, discussed how technology and new business models for running educational institutions will change the role of the instructor in the near future and how instructors must adapt. His conclusion was that while completely online learning makes education more accessible, it may result in reduced quality of education. The reduced face-to-face interaction of students with their instructors may be a disadvantage for them, as it may lead to less opportunity for students to cultivate their critical thinking skills, with a greater emphasis on factual and formulaic learning, due to the constraints of distance learning. He challenged teachers to ensure that their role in education is not overlooked and that they are not deemed “obsolete,” when they in fact are an integral part of the learning process.

Keynote Lecture:Gradually, Then Suddenly: How Technology Has Changed Teaching in Higher EducationBrian Kibby, President of McGraw-Hill, discussed how education is changing and how technology will enhance the learning process for both students and teachers. His overall message was that instructors should have three skills to help them transition to the new way of learning in a world where technology is increasingly emphasized:

* be open to trying new things * network – ask your colleagues for help * don’t be afraid to fail

Best Practices for Designing and Assessing Online Discussion QuestionsIn this session, effective design of discussion questions was addressed. Although the perspective was from the point of view of an online instructor, the concepts discussed also applied to face-to-face instruction. Ensuring clarity and tying the question back to learning objectives were discussed, as well as the need for a clear rubric or other set of guidelines to help the students know what was expected of them and what the purpose of the exercise was. Good question design practices include being specific, having boundaries, and stimulating conversation. Asking students to provide evidence, reasoning, or to make conclusions helps them develop their critical thinking skills. This may be achieved by asking open-ended questions, which don’t necessarily have one right answer. References should be included when appropriate to give students a starting point in answering questions. Additionally, sticking to one Bloom’s taxonomic level per question or task helps the student focus and makes learning more effective. The presenters gave suggestions and tips for how to set up an online discussion board and how the instructor should participate to encourage student involvement and provide them with feedback.

Tools and Tips for the Beginning ScreencasterUses of Screencasting were provided, with a brief introduction to free online tools such as Jing and Screencast-o-Matic. Screencasting benefits include: * useful for online delivery of information * allow for students to review material at their convenience or if they were absent from class * both audio and visual delivery of information allows for better retention of informationTips for creating effective presentations were given, including the importance of personalization, appealing to multiple learning styles, using images which reinforce the topic, segmenting the material into manageable pieces, providing an overview at the beginning (pre-training), and using spoken words in addition to text to emphasize key points

Extreme Course Makeover: Building E3 Instruction in the Digital WorldE3 stands for Effective, Engaging, and Efficient instruction. The presenter demonstrated a variety of free online tolls to help instructors make their lessons more interesting, less intimidating, and easier to understand and remember. Examples of such tools included: PollEverywhere, MovieClips, TedEd, Movenote, Pinterest, Scoopit, Evernote, and InfuseLearning to name a few. The presenter showed how opening a lesson with a short video (from MovieClips.com) encourages student discussion and stimulates interest. Socrative is a program which can be used on all web-enabled devices as a student response system. Evernote can be used to create student portfolios.

Engaging Student Learning with Flipped and Blended Learning StrategiesThe difference between flipped classrooms and blended (hybrid) learning was explained. Tools which were useful for both approaches were discussed, including Angel, Moodle, Desire2Learn, WebCT (Web Course Tools or Blackboard), Dropbox and Sophia.org.

Mobile Apps: Engaging Students on Their Terms (and Their Phones)Various mobile applications were discussed which could be used as tools for communication with students, assessment, studying, and organization.

Marinating Minds: Getting Started Before We Get StartedA variety of pre-class activities were discussed to help students prepare prior to a lesson, so that more class time could be spent on higher-order cognitive activities. Pre-class activities focus on the basics (remembering and understanding), while class time is used for more complicated and challenging activities (applying, analyzing, evaluating, and creating). The learning process was divided into three parts: grate (introductory activity, done at home, to stimulate student interest), grill (questions based on recall and understanding, done at home), and garnish (probing and reflective questions, done largely in class).

Beyond Learning Management Systems: Engaging Today’s Students with Multiple MediaThe presenter showed step-by-step how to convert a PowerPoint presentation to a portable file accompanied by audio. This file can be accessed by students via a Learning Management System (e.g. Blackboard), email, or on a CD. The recording software demonstrated was Audacity. Microsoft Windows MovieMaker also was demonstrated as a means for converting photos and videos into a movie. References on “fair use” of materials to avoid copyright violation were provided as well.

What one activity would you recommend we implement immediately?I would recommend holding workshops on:

What is a flipped classroom, its benefits and how to implement it

Free internet teaching tools which can be used to increase student engagement

In the CTL newsletter, have a tip section which describes a method or technology for teaching. This could be brief, with just enough information to help an instructor to get started.

What one activity would you recommend we implement in FY 14 budget (Long Term)Have additional interactive training workshops for faculty in which:

A particular teaching technology is introduced and faculty have the opportunity to try it first hand

Collaborative workshops where faculty work on developing lesson plans (for example, flipped classroom lessons for their own discipline)

If we had available funds what would you recommend we implement?Have trainers provide interactive workshops to have faculty develop their skills further. For example:

Using iPads in the classroom (this could be both general and discipline-specific)

Using Pinterest for Reports: Promote Learning and Anchor Student InterestBarbara Looney, Black Hills State University

CONCLUSIONS:I was already pretty familiar with “flipping” but the conference workshop allowed me to sharpen my understanding and also add to my skill base. I now feel as though I would be prepared to present these skills to fellow faculty members. There was a good emphasis on how to incorporate flipping lessons to the levels of learning presented in Bloom’s taxonomy. There was also discussion on how to incentivize faculty and students to commit the time necessary to engage in this type of learning experience. This whole model is very different from what both students and faculty are used to as part of their educational experiences. Other workshops focused on which activities to handle online versus which types of activities are best done in the classroom. The details from the handouts could potentially be informative. Also important was discussion of the move towards cloud-based applications (i.e. Google Docs, Prezi, Mindmeister, Pinterest, Lovely Charts, YouTube etc.) rather than relying upon traditional desktop applications. THEME 2: CHANGES IN HIGHER EDUCATION Most relevant sessions attended in the three day conference:

The Teaching Professor in 2020: Shaping the Future in a Time of Rapid ChangeJoshua M. Kim, Director of Learning and Technology for Dartmouth’s Master of Health Care Delivery Science

Engaging the Change: From Hardback to No BackErin Wood and Forrest Anderson, Catawba College

CONCLUSIONS:There is a rapid shift towards free courses and free reference material being made available online. This is changing both the approach to in-person education as well as changes to the textbook market. I have already begun to investigate online options for textbooks and other reference materials with the goal of reducing the cost for students as much as possible. In my human biology course (Biology 115) in summer of 2014, I have already decided to adopt a free online biology textbook available through OpenStax College (http://openstaxcollege.org/). I will still have students purchase a printed book for the course but it is not a traditional biology textbook and the cost is much lower (The Machinery of Life by David S. Goodsell). I have been pushed to investigate MOOCs more closely as a result of this conference. I have participated in a MOOC course myself on HIV/AIDS offered through Coursera and have been able to see both the advantages and disadvantages. I see that traditional faculty will need to change their view of what constitutes instruction in the classroom if in-person learning is going to survive. The traditional modes of learning in the sciences are shifting to an online format and in some cases that online format can be superior. However, there can still be a place for in-person learning to focus on development of higher order learning, especially application, analysis, evaluation, and creation. Faculty have skills that extend beyond textbooks and lectures. We will need to start delivering these skills to our students in order to justify an in-person learning experience. I feel as though this has always been my teaching philosophy so I am continuously working on delivering a classroom experience that goes beyond what students can read in reference material.

THEME 3: TECHNOLOGY FOR WRITING ACROSS THE CURRICULUMMost relevant sessions attended in the three day conference:

Writing Across the Curriculum Using TechnologyGail White, DeVry University and Tim Hibsman, Indiana University of Pennsylvania

CONCLUSIONS: I was already using writing technology tools in my biology courses but wanted to find out whether there were other affordable and effective alternatives that I could implement. As it turns out, I am already using one of the better solutions out there (Criterion by ETS) and the alternative (Grammarly.com) is much more expensive and not very useful for tracking student progress. Criterion by ETS is excellent for assessment purposes and I wish that the district and/or college would consider an institutional subscription. Right now, I am having students purchase their own subscriptions through the bookstore but that may come to an end with the change in bookstore vendors. I am not sure whether the new vendor carries this Criterion product. From what I have seen on TextbookX.com, it does not appear that Akademos orders and sells this product.THEME 4: BUILDING 21ST CENTURY SKILLSMost relevant sessions attended in the three day conference:

Science and Digital Stories: Can it be Done?Sabrina Timperman, Mercy College

CONCLUSIONS:I have started to focus more on building 21st century skills in my courses and intend to continue to do so. Many of our students do not realize that social networking is one of the major factors (if not, the one major factor) necessary for career development. Electronic profiles and portfolios are becoming necessary to market a student’s educational accomplishments and development of professional skills. The ability to guide students in the right direction is crucial. For example, steering students towards developing a LinkedIn or Google + profile while cleaning up or deleting their Facebook profile. Online profile management is fast becoming a major concern to the development of a professional’s career. Also important was discussion of the move towards cloud-based applications (i.e. Google Docs, Prezi, Mindmeister, Pinterest, Lovely Charts, YouTube etc.) rather than relying upon traditional desktop applications. Here is an example of how I have been starting to engage students in this endeavor. The following article about creating a LinkedIn profile was distributed by e-mail to all of my students from the past two years: